THE UFC HITS GERMANY IN JUNE WITH FRANKLIN VS WANDERLEI SILVA

Cologne, Germany - The Ultimate Fighting Championship® organization announced today that, this summer, it will bring the world's fastest growing sport to Germany for the first time.

At a packed press conference in Cologne, UFC® President Dana White, UFC Chairman Lorenzo Fertitta and MLK CEO Marek Lieberberg confirmed UFC 99: THE COMEBACK will take place at the LANXESS Arena, Cologne, on Saturday, June 13.

Cologne, Germany - The Ultimate Fighting Championship® organization announced today that, this summer, it will bring the world's fastest growing sport to Germany for the first time.

At a packed press conference in Cologne, UFC® President Dana White, UFC Chairman Lorenzo Fertitta and MLK CEO Marek Lieberberg confirmed UFC 99: THE COMEBACK will take place at the LANXESS Arena, Cologne, on Saturday, June 13.

The main event will be a unique catchweight showdown between elite former world champions Rich Franklin and Wanderlei Silva. The former UFC middleweight champion and Pride 205lbs champion collide at 195lbs, a catchweight between the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions.

UFC President Dana White said: "June 13, 2009, is a huge day in the history of the UFC. It has been a long time coming, but the best fighters on the planet are finally heading to Germany for our first event ever in mainland Europe.

“We are coming with a stacked card and a unique main event. Rich Franklin v Wanderlei Silva is another of those dream fights fans never thought they’d get to see - but we are making it happen in Germany.

White continued, “Everyone knows Rich moved up to light heavyweight a couple of fights ago while Wanderlei is planning on fighting at 185lbs from now on, but this fight is too exciting a match not to happen and both these guys deserve a ton of credit for taking this fight at 195lbs.”

Tickets for UFC 99: THE COMEBACK are priced at 250 Euro, 150 Euro, 85 Euro, 70 Euro, 55 Euro and 45 Euro and go on sale for UFC® Fight Club™ members Monday, March 9 and for UFC Newsletter subscribers and MLK Newsletter subscribers on Wednesday, March 11.

Tickets go on general public release on Friday, March 13. Tickets will be available via www.eventim.de, telephone +49 (0)1805-570 000 or from the LANXESS Arena from March 13.

UFC 99 will be available on pay-per-view at 10 p.m. EST/7 p.m. PST on iN DEMAND, DIRECTV, DISH Network, TVN, Bell TV, Shaw Communications and Viewer’s Choice Canada for a suggested retail price of $44.95 for standard definition or high-definition broadcasts (where available); UFC fans also have the option to watch UFC 99 pay-per-view live from Cologne, Germany at 3pm EST/12 Noon PST.

Cincinnati, Ohio native Rich ‘Ace’ Franklin, 26-4 in mixed martial arts, is a former UFC Middleweight Champion and one of the biggest names in the sport. His intelligent, yet aggressive style has resulted in victories over the likes of Evan Tanner, Jorge Rivera, Ken Shamrock, Nate Quarry, Yushin Okami, Travis Lutter and Matt Hamill.

Born in Brazil, but now based in Las Vegas, the 32-9-1 Wanderlei Silva is one of the true icons of mixed martial arts. Famed throughout the world for his all out attacking style, ‘the Axe Murderer’ has defeated a who’s who of MMA during his 13 year career, including Ricardo Arona, Kazushi Sakuraba, Dan Henderson, Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson and Keith Jardine.

Commenting on the UFC’s first ever event in mainland Europe, UFC Chairman Lorenzo Fertitta said: "Our vision for the UFC has always been global. Following on from our successes in the United Kingdom and Ireland, our first card in mainland Europe is another significant step towards making the UFC's brand of mixed martial arts the biggest sport in the world."

Featuring competitive bouts throughout the card and in-house production values to rival any live event or concert, the UFC holds over two dozen box office and merchandise records in arenas across the USA, Canada, as well as setting 10 arena records in the United Kingdom and Ireland since April 2007.

The world's largest provider of pay-per-view television, in the eight years since Zuffa bought the organization the UFC has become one of the most successful brands in the history of world sport.

Now this hugely exciting sport comes to Germany for the first time. Partnering with leading German entertainment impresario Marek Lieberberg, UFC 99 is the latest step in the UFC cementing its position amongst the world sports elite.

For more information, or current UFC fight news, visit ufc.com or uk.ufc.com or ufcespanol.com. All bouts live and subject to change.